Store-and-forward messaging channel for occasionally connected mobile applications

In a mobile network computing environment including mobile computing devices that may be occasionally or frequently disconnected from network connectivity, a method of providing a fall-back transport so that when other transports fail due to disconnection of a mobile device from the network, receiving application or service data that is typically received via the other network transports can still be accomplished, the method comprising:

• at a service connected to the network, intercepting service or application data from a service or application, and the service packaging the service or application data in an email envelope of an email message, the service also including in the email envelope an identification of an application or service to which the application or service data should be applied;
• intercepting at an email server connected to the network the email message packaged with the service or application data and the identification of the application or service to which the application or service data should be applied;
• from the email server, forwarding the email message to a mobile device and then extracting the application or service data from the email envelope along with the identification of the application or service to which the application or service data should be applied;
• the mobile device then using the identification of the application or service to which the application or service data should be applied to identify from among a plurality of applications or services the application or service to which the application or service data should be applied;
• and
• in the event of a failure of other network transports, the email service then routing the application data to an appropriate application or service as identified.